Lilly NCD Partners Gather in South Africa to Advance the Fight against NCDs

Jul 17, 2013 1:45 PM ET

LillyPad

Guest blog from Lilly's Vice President of Global Health Programs and Access, Dr. Evan Lee.

It is an exciting week for our NCD Partnership in South Africa as Lilly team members and partners are gathering for the Economist Group’s second annual conference on NCDs and Lilly’s first ever Partnership Summit in Johannesburg, July 16-19. The week will be off to a flying start with the “New Approaches to Non-Communicable Diseases” conference on Tuesday, July 16. Hosted by The Economist Group and sponsored by Lilly, this meeting builds on our inaugural conference last year in Geneva, which focused on the dangerous rise of NCDs in developing countries.

The Economist Group has labeled NCDs a “chronic disease time bomb.” That’s not hyperbole. Four in every five NCD-related deaths today are in developing countries, putting an enormous strain on health care systems. We’re looking forward to participating in thought-provoking conversations about the role of innovative partnerships in driving solutions to NCDs.

Following the Economist Group conference, Lilly partners will convene our first ever Partnership Summit. This event will bring together global thinkers and doers from each of our partner countries – South Africa, India, Mexico and Brazil – to share information on projects they’re spearheading to strengthen diabetes care.

Read more about how these collaborations are a critical component of improving global health and access to better diagnosis and care for diabetes and related illnesses.